Babies abroad

KATIE HAMPSON

May 31, 2017

WA couples desperate to become parents are travelling overseas to take advantage of more relaxed rules surrounding fertility treatments.

Research shows one in six couples cannot conceive within a year and many of them go on to have fertility treatment. However, some people take the extreme step of heading overseas for help, particularly if they require a donor egg or surrogate.

Clinics in countries such as South Africa, Greece and throughout Asia are attracting women who have been told their chances of becoming pregnant with their own eggs is slim.

Dubbed ‘fertility tourism’ it is also popular with gay male couples wanting to start a family who need to find a surrogate as well.

Some even criss-cross the globe and use a donated egg from South Africa, say, and a surrogate in India.

The age of the eggs is another major attraction. Altruistic donors in Australia tend to be older so pregnancy success rates are poorer but they are very high when a donor is 23 and there is no shortage of younger donors willing to sell their eggs to clinics overseas.

However, WA fertility specialists are warning there are wild variations in the quality of services offered abroad.

Australia is one of the few countries in which IVF and other reproduction technologies are self-regulated and its fertility clinics are regarded internationally as having an excellent track record.

For example, while many international clinics allow multiple embryos to be put back, Australia has a single embryo transfer policy.

“The reason we have a single embryo transfer policy here is because the technology and the success rates are so good,” explains Dr Michael Allen, obstetrician and gynaecologist at Hollywood Fertility Centre.

“We don’t need to try and put multiple embryos back in because of that and also there is perhaps not enough awareness out there about the fact that multiple pregnancies are not easy pregnancies for women and are not without substantial risk for mother and baby.

“Risks such as pre-eclampsia and diabetes are issues that are not really discussed between some of these overseas clinics and their patients and then there are the risks associated with multiples and pre-term labour and then all those issues associated with pre-term labour such as cerebral palsy.”

He makes the point that every baby in a triplet pregnancy has a 25 per cent chance of having cerebral palsy.

“We understand people will take any risk whatsoever when they reach a certain stage so they will tell us they want two embryos put back in but in Australia we explain why there is a very strong argument for single embryo transfer in terms of the success rate.

“They are not wasting that second or third embryo either (if the cycle doesn’t work) and can try again because although there may be a perception that each IVF cycle will cost between $10,000 and $15,000 this is simply not the case because Medicare is so generous with the rebates so it is reasonably available to most of the population.”

He says although costs vary between clinics in Australia, couples usually only need to pay between $3000 and $4000 per treatment cycle after the rebate. “In America, the costs of undergoing fertility treatment is upwards of $30,000,” he adds.

About 500 Australians are believed to go overseas each year seeking donor gametes, however, according to Dr Allen the real figure is very difficult to glean.

“The reason we find out a patient has gone abroad is because they end up disclosing it to us at some point so we know it is happening,” he says.

“A reasonably large proportion of the population need donor eggs and because the legislation in WA is pretty tight we do know some will seek out overseas options.

“It might be a 42-year-old who has a very poor ovarian reserve and has tried many cycles without success.

“However, you don’t see many people going overseas for IVF treatment if they can use their own eggs.”

In Australia another woman’s eggs cannot be bought and this is partly why there is such a shortage of donors.

Payment can only be given for medical expenses and the donor must also be known to the patient.

This means that unless a couple in Australia knows of a friend or relative who is willing to offer up an egg or sperm, they have little chance of finding a donor.

If a couple travels somewhere like Greece, however, they can expect to pay about $1,500 for a donor egg and the donor can remain anonymous. In Thailand, the cost is around $3000 for an egg and in America it is a free-market system, so costs can reportedly reach $10,000 if couples want an egg from an Ivy-League educated woman, or a model.

In countries such as India where there are more than 500 centres now providing IVF services, sex selection is allowed, which is against ethical guidelines in Australia.

However, Australian fertility experts urge couples to find a local donor. They are also encouraged to consider ethical and medical concerns. For example, what is the impact on children of anonymous donors when they want to find out who their biological mother is, but can’t? And, could an overseas egg donor fail to disclose their true medical history because they need the money?

Egg Banks do exist in Australia, though not in WA, and there are eggs imported from the World Egg Bank in the US but it is at a substantial cost to patients, usually about $20,000.

This is why those who cannot afford it tend seek out donors on their own through websites such as Egg Donor Angels and online forums.

“There are eastern states places with international registers and there are things such as international eggs banks which some clinics are using and eggs are collected and screened under the legislative requirements of the state that uses them,” explains Dr Allen.

“It would be fantastic if some form of it were available here if only to try and limit the amount patients have to go through to achieve a pregnancy.”

Did you know?

Australia is a world leader in IVF and many other forms of assisted reproductive technology. More than three per cent of all Australian births are now due to IVF treatment - that’s the equivalent of one child in every classroom of 30.

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